' I don't care!'
At least that is what Detective Kate Beckett chanted to herself every half hour that evening. She sat at home, staring at her television set and not taking anything in as she wrapped her arms tighter around herself. She didn't care that Richard Castle was out right now on a date. She didn't care that the woman was a beautiful, young, vibrant woman. She didn't care that it was one of the very women who had reassured her that every woman wanted to land Richard Castle, including his current date.
"I don't care."
Why did she let someone else bid on him? He'd begged her to bid and he would pay for the whole thing and, if she would have held out, he might have even compensated her for biding in the first place. She bit her lower lip and shook her head before a chuckle crossed her lips. At least that gentleman who smiled at them and bid on Richard hadn't been the one to win. Although, she considered further, if he had, she could have been reassured that nothing was going on right now. She was fairly positive that her writing partner didn't swing that way.
"I don't care!" she repeated and jumped up off her couch, looking through her house for something to do. The puzzle book was complete, her Internet was down and there was absolutely nothing on television except for repeats of the same mind-dulling shows.
She decided to start running a bath and poured a little foaming gel into the running water before going to get her towel and wash cloth. A nice relaxing bath would certainly help calm her down. She hoped so, anyway.
That's when the doorbell rang. Towels, pajamas and loofah in hand, she ran to her door to answer the buzzer and swung it open in surprise.
"Castle," she choked out, swallowing a few times before finally regaining her senses. "What are you doing here? I thought…"
"I got out of there as quickly as possible. Diane was driving me nuts! I swear she's modeled herself after Alicia Silverstone in Clueless." He stepped into her apartment and stood by the doorway, not daring to venture too far into her space should he need to leave quickly. "Besides, I figured after a night of torture, I should swing by and annoy you a little since you could have saved me this unbearable evening, but decided not to. So, how are things at the office?" he asked with a grin and crossed his arms over his chest. She put her hand on her hip and leaned her shoulder against the door.
"Castle, I really don't think I'm up for this right now."
"Well, I wasn't up for a horrible flashback to the airheads of the nineties tonight, but I had to endure."
"Castle…"
"Look, Beckett, I just wanted to swing by, let you know that some other woman has not taken your place in my heart. You are still my inspiration, so there's no need to be nervous or worried about competition."
"Worried? Competition?! Of all the self-absorbed, egotistical… I do not worry about being replaced. The sooner this 'research' is over with the better. Seriously, do you hear yourself?!"
"Yes, and I also hear a waterfall," he said and her eyes narrowed as if he had grown a second head.
"Waterfall? What the… The bath!" she screeched and took off towards the room at the end of her hall. She looked in and saw the water all over the floor, slowly creeping away from the tub as it overflowed. With a groan, she walked through the puddle about a meter wide and switched off the taps.
"Everything alright?" he asked, walking in behind her and letting out a low whistle. "Nice lake, Beckett," he teased, but she spun on him and noticed he'd removed his shoes and socks. "I… took them off in case you needed some help. By the looks of it, you do."
He took the towel from under her arm and began to wipe up the water around them both while she went to retrieve a mop and pail. Rising from the floor, he took the mop and began to collect all the overflow while she looked at her tub in dismay.
"Guess this idea's shot," she mumbled and rolled up her long sleeve before she leaned down to reach into the tub to pull out the stopper. It came out for a moment, but fell back in almost immediately.
She let out a shriek and Rick turned around in time to see her hand slide out from under her on the edge of the tub. Her body wobbled from side to side for a moment until, finally, her feet lost their balance. He tried to reach towards her, but it was too late. Her body slid and, stretched over the tub the way she was to reach in, she landed in the soapy suds while the water splashed over the sides.
Rick bit his lower lip and his shoulders bounced with barely suppressed laughter as he continued to mop up to constantly spilling water. Kate looked up through sud-covered hair to stare at him. Her silence made him turn around and, upon sight of her, he burst into uncontrollable laughter.
"Not funny, Castle."
"Yes, it is." He immediately took out his cell phone and, before she could say a word, snapped off a picture of her.
"Castle!" she yelled at him, but he continued to laugh and set his phone back in his pocket before shrugging out of his jacket and hanging it on the hook behind the door. Between the mopping, the heat from the steam of the water and his now receding laughter, a light sheen of sweat had broken out on his forehead and he was getting warmer still.
"Beckett, would you relax?" he said as he continued to swipe the mop from side to side before ringing it out. He turned to her. "It's no big deal. You won't melt and I doubt your pajamas are dry-clean only!" Her legs hung over the side and dangled in front of him. She sat there with as stern a look as she could muster on her face. "C'mon, Beckett," he encouraged, setting down the mop and stepping closer to her. He reached out his hand and waited. "C'mon. Olive branch. Let me help you up," he said and she stared at him, wondering for a moment if he was on the level. "I promise I won't try anything. Now, c'mon."
With a sigh, she reached out and took his hand, letting him help her out a little before biting her lower lip and letting herself turn to dead weight. He let out a wail and began to fall forwards, lifting his arms out in front of him to break his fall and he succeeded, too. His hands landed on the back wall of Beckett's tub, holding him up. He looked at her for a moment as if to silently curse her. Her eyes sparkled.
"Beckett…" he said, his teeth clenched, but she ignored him and grabbed hold of his shirt front, giving it a tug. As a result, his balance fled him once more and he came splashing into the water alongside her. She began to chuckle, holding her hand in front of her face as he turned in the water to be sitting the same way she was. When she looked up, he had suds in his hair and clinging to his shoulders as well as the sky blue dress shirt he had been wearing. The problem was that the water had turned it sheer and it clung to his chest, making her mouth terribly dry. Still, she managed to continue laughing at him.
"Now, we're even," she chuckled, but he fixed her with a stare.
"We're far from even. You're already home. I'm not. I can't drive home soaking wet like this! Thanks a lot, Beckett…"
"No problem, Ricky!" she laughed and he lifted his eyes to hers once more, his piercing blue gaze pinning her in place. Their eyes locked and neither could turn away. He turned towards her a little and she swallowed.
"Excuse me," he whispered and, before she had time to react or brace herself, his hand was wrapped around the back of her neck and he was pulling her closer and closer to him. Then, his lips met hers and any chance she'd had of resisting was gone.
Her eyes opened a crack and she stared at his face as he kissed her for a moment. Suddenly, his eyes opened, too, and their gazes locked once again. His electric blue eyes met her bright green ones and the passion of the kiss spiked suddenly. She fisted her hands in his shirt, grabbing the lapels in a death grip and holding him close to her while his hands slid down her back and pulled her bodily against him. His arms curled around her and held her securely to his chest, his fingers right over the band of her bra just beneath her arms.
The kiss became frenzied and he began to pepper them all over her face while her breath caught in her throat. She gasped when he kissed the hollow of her neck and he lowered her head into the water to wet back her hair before pulling her into his lap. That's when she felt the swell against her bottom and the kiss came to a screeching halt.
"Castle, what the hell are you doing?"
He seemed dazed and confused by her question and his eyes opened and closed several times before he seemed to even understand the question. He licked his lips and she wondered if it was possible to feel any warmer than she was right then and there.
"What?"
"What are you doing? We're about to go at it in my bathtub."
It seemed to take a few moments, but the mask of playfulness gradually slipped back into place, although it did not quite reach his eyes.
"I'm game if you are," he joked, but she fell silent and angled herself as if it would help her see deeper into his eyes.
"What happened?" she asked, watching him jerk to alertness.
"Well, you kind of put a damper on things, no pun intended."
"What's wrong with you? You just put your walls back up. What's the matter? What did I do?"
He swung her legs out of his lap and they dripped over the edge. "Maybe I should be going…" he grumbled, his voice low and his eyes swung away from her. As he tried to push himself up, she took his hand and yanked him back down. "Beckett…"
"Rick, what did I do?"
"Nothing…" he said quickly and tried to push himself up once again, but she prevented him again. "Beckett, I think this is enough," he said carefully, although he still refused to bring his eyes to hers. Placing his hands on the back of the tub, he pushed and tried to hoist himself out of the water, but she pulled him back down again. "Damn it, Beckett!" he yelled and finally turned towards her to be met by her lips pressing against his. A tiny sound of surprise percolated in his throat for a second, but it passed and he accepted her open lips against his.
"I was worried…" she whispered when she broke off the kiss. "I thought you'd be the flake writer I had you pegged as and you'd flit off after some new bimbo while the truth is that I've… I've gotten used to having you around." Her eyes were lowered and her voice was barely above a murmur. "We make a good team and I've even gotten used to your quirky and sometimes too self-confident attitude."
"Beckett…" he whispered and slipped his hand beneath her chin to turn her head towards his. She licked her lips and slowly lifted her eyes. "I was serious before; you don't have to worry. We've got something just as partners that I never even had with any of my ex-wives. We have this inbred system of checks and balances and that's what makes our working relationship so great. And I want to thank you for that, Kate."
"You're welcome , Rick," she whispered and leaned in to give him a quick kiss on the cheek, but he turned and captured her lips with his, making her whimper against his mouth as his tongue ran along the crease of her lips. With his hands by his sides, he could not help but smile against her lips. She lifted away from him. "What?"
"You're kissing me back, even though I'm not holding you against me. You're enjoying this!" he said, his cocky attitude returned, but she just smiled back at him and bit her lowered lip. She took hold of his lapels and pulled him just close enough to rest her forehead against his.
"At least I was while you were actually doing something." He grinned and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back into his lap and making her squeak in surprise. His eyes locked with hers.
"Oh, I'll do something alright…"